It is well known in the art to provide a saw blade, whether straight or circular, which includes removable and replaceable teeth.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 174,216 to J. E. Emerson discloses a saw which has removable teeth which are held into place with a spring loaded mechanism.
U.S. Pat. No. 246,703 to E. C. Atkins discloses a detachable saw tooth which employs the use of detentes to hold insertable teeth in place.
U.S. Pat. No. 303,787 to W. Arnold discloses an insertable saw tooth which is generally curved in nature and provides a spring like securing method when the curved member is forced into a straight slot.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,608,182 to J. Pashpish discloses an insertable saw tooth for circular saw blades which also employs a pin 11 and notches 9 and 10. As can be seen by these patents, the provision of removable saw teeth members has been well known for well over 100 years.
Recently, U.S. Pat. No. 4,801,224 to Peterson et al. discloses a tool and insert for chip removal which teaches the provision of an insert which achieves a carefully definable stop in the longitudinal direction of the insert independent of the magnitude of the cutting forces acting upon the insert.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,524,518 to Sundstrom discloses a saw blade with replaceable tips wedged in recesses along the periphery of the blade and held thereby elastic forces. Sundstrom also teaches the provision of tension distributing holes in the saw blade.
While many attempts have been made to provide a replaceable cutting member for the saw blade, there remains to this day a need for a saw blade, whether it be a band saw blade or a circular blade, which allows for the quick and easy replacement of a cutting tooth without special tools while allowing a secure and safe attachment of the cutting tooth member to the blade.